On the Newest Development in Standardization of Modern Hebrew
This is an answer I've published in another blog...
It is true that languages evolve and live languages evolve lively. Greek, for example evolved so much so, that modern Greek speakers have no idea what the ancient texts in that language say without translation. English is a prime example for that evolution (try to read King James and then try to read Beowulf.)
I will not get into the question whether the nequdot are Torah leMoshe miSinai or are a later development. Suffice to say that leKhulei 'Alma, by the Ninth century, the Biblical Hebrew was codified around the Kether Ben-Asher. The language thus got a strong, standard baseline that was revered enough to disallow any diversion from the basic grammar while allowing enough flexibility to absorb foreign terminology, changes in the syntax and still live in peace with other layers of the language (the attempt of the grammarians to "correct" some Mishnaic text was mentioned in this discussion.)
This standard baseline also allowed several, equally 'correct' dialects of the language to co-exist. The Yemanites are famous to preserve distinction between all vowels and consonants, but even the Ahkenazi, 'Iraqi and Sephardi dialects and their local variations preserved most of such distinctions, if in different pronunciations. But the most important effect of this baseline is that Hebrew is probably the only living language that its learned speakers may master or at least have a fair understanding of most historical layers of the language, at least from late biblical times onward.
In modernizing the language and making it into a national language of the political entity of the State of Israel, some steps were taken with intended and unintended results.
1. The language was 'standardized' based on the Sephardi standard, but as this standard is performed (pronounced) by the Ashkenazi population. The result was the bastardization of the language and is the main cause of the sloppy pronunciation by the whole population.
2. The baseline ceased to be revered because of the secularization of the society. The result is that every Zav uMetzora' allow him/herself to change to their heart content. One such change that was luckily, rejected, was the suggestion by 'Uzi Ornan (a disciple of No'am Chomsky) to switch to Latin Characters (an inferior writing system that cannot represent any of the gutturals, especially the consonant Aleph! BTW, Aleph exists in most non-European languages.)
3. With the modern poor educational system that abandoned teaching grammar (US is as guilty as Israel in that,) the Israelis began to loose their connection with the proper Hebrew. The result is the inventions of structures that are not needed otherwise and neglecting the proper pronunciations.
The Academy was appointed to preserve the baseline while introducing new words and maybe new structures when no such structures exist. When they were doing so, I could have argue with Rabbi Teitz and others that there is no real difference between Hebrew and Loshon Kodesh and the invention of the term Loshon Kodesh as defining a different language was no more then political invention of the Anti-Zionist, frumi Jews, I can no longer stand by this argument. There
is now a drive in the secular world to separate the two languages by actively destroying the connection with the baseline. I think that the people who lend their name to that development will be judged harshly by history. I may just imagine the unintended consequences of such moves.
I will forever stay with the language that will become to be known as Loshon Kodesh.
It is true that languages evolve and live languages evolve lively. Greek, for example evolved so much so, that modern Greek speakers have no idea what the ancient texts in that language say without translation. English is a prime example for that evolution (try to read King James and then try to read Beowulf.)
I will not get into the question whether the nequdot are Torah leMoshe miSinai or are a later development. Suffice to say that leKhulei 'Alma, by the Ninth century, the Biblical Hebrew was codified around the Kether Ben-Asher. The language thus got a strong, standard baseline that was revered enough to disallow any diversion from the basic grammar while allowing enough flexibility to absorb foreign terminology, changes in the syntax and still live in peace with other layers of the language (the attempt of the grammarians to "correct" some Mishnaic text was mentioned in this discussion.)
This standard baseline also allowed several, equally 'correct' dialects of the language to co-exist. The Yemanites are famous to preserve distinction between all vowels and consonants, but even the Ahkenazi, 'Iraqi and Sephardi dialects and their local variations preserved most of such distinctions, if in different pronunciations. But the most important effect of this baseline is that Hebrew is probably the only living language that its learned speakers may master or at least have a fair understanding of most historical layers of the language, at least from late biblical times onward.
In modernizing the language and making it into a national language of the political entity of the State of Israel, some steps were taken with intended and unintended results.
1. The language was 'standardized' based on the Sephardi standard, but as this standard is performed (pronounced) by the Ashkenazi population. The result was the bastardization of the language and is the main cause of the sloppy pronunciation by the whole population.
2. The baseline ceased to be revered because of the secularization of the society. The result is that every Zav uMetzora' allow him/herself to change to their heart content. One such change that was luckily, rejected, was the suggestion by 'Uzi Ornan (a disciple of No'am Chomsky) to switch to Latin Characters (an inferior writing system that cannot represent any of the gutturals, especially the consonant Aleph! BTW, Aleph exists in most non-European languages.)
3. With the modern poor educational system that abandoned teaching grammar (US is as guilty as Israel in that,) the Israelis began to loose their connection with the proper Hebrew. The result is the inventions of structures that are not needed otherwise and neglecting the proper pronunciations.
The Academy was appointed to preserve the baseline while introducing new words and maybe new structures when no such structures exist. When they were doing so, I could have argue with Rabbi Teitz and others that there is no real difference between Hebrew and Loshon Kodesh and the invention of the term Loshon Kodesh as defining a different language was no more then political invention of the Anti-Zionist, frumi Jews, I can no longer stand by this argument. There
is now a drive in the secular world to separate the two languages by actively destroying the connection with the baseline. I think that the people who lend their name to that development will be judged harshly by history. I may just imagine the unintended consequences of such moves.
I will forever stay with the language that will become to be known as Loshon Kodesh.
posted by ZA at 12:46 לפנה״צ
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